Moving back to South this Fall, Asheville or Chattanooga?

Hello Everyone,
I have been living in NE Utah for the past three years and working at the City of Rocks in southern Idaho for the season May-Octoberish. My girlfriend and I are headed to the South this Fall and we were considering Asheville and Chattanooga, I was curious if anyone had any advice on how close the climbing is to each, or even other towns. I would love to know how long it actually takes to commute from Asheville to looking glass etc...

I know my girlfriend loves the scene in Asheville, just curious what the hippie vibes are like in Chattanooga?

I am often lucky enough to work part time or sporadically in the winter and will be headed back to the City of Rocks for the season next year to avoid the humidity. It seems like good climbing is very close to Chattanooga, which would be nice for my poor man winter plan, just curious how long it takes from town to get to bouldering, sport, trad etc... I predominantly trad climb, but love bouldering, and am trying to climb more sport, which is just so hard with all the good cracks around here.

Thanks in advance.
Adam Floyd

Everyone I talk to seems to love Chatts above all for climbing and the arts. Great gym there too.

Move to Chattanooga, go to Green Life Grocery Store in the morning on the weekend. Sit in the parking lot, chose your climbing adventure. There will be ten groups of people going to boulder, 12 going to sport climb and 10 going to trad climb. Most of these climbers will gladly invite you to join. I live in Chattanooga, but I was in City of Rocks for a bit this month, and you're very spoiled as far as close access (not close access to anything else though) in Chatty, you're really never more than a half hour away from world class climbing in all disciplines.

How about the commute from Asheville to the Bald? Is there anything closer to town than that?

Way more climbing in Chatty. Unlimited bouldering, trad, and sport (all single pitch of course) within 20min of town. Chatty will feel like the Deep South though. Hard to find good music/herb there. Asheville has better culture, aka you might forgot you are in the South for a moment. Very chill scene there, probably the best in South. There really isn't a whole lot of climbing closer to town than the Bald though (a few small areas that are hush-hush). 45min to Bald, about an hour to the Glass or Linville. Asheville has way better Summer options and multipitch climbing (none of that near Chatty). Tough call. I'd check out Boone if you can, it has great local climbing and a good scene, but it's a small town.

Ben Sachs wrote: Chatty will feel like the Deep South though. Hard to find good music/herb there.

Er, I don't know, it depends what part of down you're in. If you're in Ooltewah, East Ridge, or out in the country, then yeah, very Bible belt. But the downtown area is VERY hippie friendly. The Southside and the North Shore being the most hippie centric. You can definitely avoid too many McCain/Palin '08 bumper stickers if you want.

Ben Sachs wrote:Way more climbing in Chatty. Unlimited bouldering, trad, and sport (all single pitch of course) within 20min of town. Chatty will feel like the Deep South though. Hard to find good music/herb there. Asheville has better culture, aka you might forgot you are in the South for a moment. Very chill scene there, probably the best in South. There really isn't a whole lot of climbing closer to town than the Bald though (a few small areas that are hush-hush). 45min to Bald, about an hour to the Glass or Linville. Asheville has way better Summer options and multipitch climbing (none of that near Chatty). Tough call. I'd check out Boone if you can, it has great local climbing and a good scene, but it's a small town.

+1 on everything said. Tough decision, needs to be made on which town you like more, not which has better climbing. Also depends on what kind of climbing you like and if you plan to spend summers in ID.

Ben Sachs wrote:....Asheville has way better Summer options and multipitch climbing (none of that near Chatty).

True on Summer options near Asheville, although the WNC high country, to include Laurel Knob and Whitesides (as an example) is a scenic 3 hr drive and offers reasonably cool camping and climbing throughout the hottest months of the year. Chattanooga also has some great climbing near swimming holes and/or paddling.

And, no multipitch near Chatty??? Well, this is just not true at all...no big walls, but there are many routes with 2 to 4 pitches that are 150' to 300' tall within an hour of downtown Chattanooga. Some within 20 minutes.

I've got nothing on all the other South-hatred, aside from this:

Ben Sachs wrote:Hard to find good music/herb there.

What 'willeslinger' said....
You're not looking in the right place for either, apparently.

I enjoy both places but prefer that 'Deep South' flavor over the Boulder-esque vibe in Asheville. I love the NC mountains as much as anyone, but the variety, given a propensity to drive a bit, tips the hat for Chatty, if it were me.

... and you can get good weed and music in Chatty, but probably not as good as Asheville.

If you can get out for summer, (which is totally desperate if you grew up in the high desert like me)...and you are totally into climbing...

Chatt. Try before you buy, stay down at the Crashpad and check it out for a few days...Dan, Max and Al will send you the right way...

17 years ago someone told me to check it out but it took a decade and a half and another friend for some "belief".

The Noog! After i left the Southeast i have been jonesing to get back. Foster Falls, Obed, LRC, HP40, Rocktown, T-Wall, it just keeps going...

bv
white-knuckled.blogspot.com/

Thanks for all of the advice.

I am not worried about finding herb, and luckily moving from NE Utah anything seems cultured. It is fifty miles from my work to a grocery store. I can chase the lower humidity to Idaho for the summer, what are the winter temps like in Boone. Someone once told me it was colder and gloomier than other places. But that could be an option.

I do love rocktown, and haven't had any chance to sample Chattanooga crags, is the sandstone similar to rocktown?

I'm biased living in Chattanooga myself. Just moved here a year ago. But have also lived in New England, Colorado and an hour from Asheville too. There's more variety here than anywhere else. The rock is similar to the rock in the New, high quartzite content, bullet, beautiful, etc, etc...and that's just the climbing areas you've "heard of".

You're not worried with the summer being that you'll be in Utah...so better summer options aren't even your concern. Don't go to Boone...you'll be snowed in a lot and traveling to TN anyway...might as well move here.

You have amazing bouldering, sport, and trad all within a 30 min jaunt. Expand that to an hour or an hour and half and your choices multiply by a power of 20.

Shoot me a message if you do wind up here...I'll give you some places to check out.

My girlfriend is pretty awesome and told me to pick where I want to go as long as we can live in a neighborhood where it is possible to bike to the grocery store and a coffee shop. Chattanooga definitely looks like the spot. Anyone with good advice on cool neighborhoods? We will be living pretty cheap at first, then see where we are. As for everyone who replied, thanks again, and I will definitely message the folks who suggested it.
I am making some stops in Utah (San Rafael Swell, Indian Creek), stopping in Colorado and would be in Tennessee in early Octoberish, without a schedule and looking to climb.
Best,
Adam

Some people will probably scratch their heads at this suggestion, but I think Atlanta is a great central location for climbers. Not because there's much climbing near Atlanta, but because it's easy to get to a lot of great areas:

~1 hour from Atlanta: Tallulah Gorge, Mount Yonah, Currahee
~2-2.5 hours: T-Wall, Sunset, Leda, Deep Creek, Foster Falls, Jamestown, Sand Rock, Griffin Falls, Suck Creek, Lost Wall
~3 hours: Looking Glass, Laurel Knob, Whiteside, Steele, Crowders
~4 hours: Obed, Rumbling Bald, Linville Gorge
~5 hours: Stone Mountain, Moore's Wall, Pilot Mountain
~6-7 hours: Red River Gorge

Asheville and Chattanooga are both really nice cities, I wouldn't turn down living in either one. But getting to NC destinations (and believe me, you'll want to) from Chattanooga is kind of a pain in the ass driving through the mountains; similar for TN destinations from Asheville.

JL

Adam Floyd wrote:Thanks for all of the advice. I am not worried about finding herb, and luckily moving from NE Utah anything seems cultured. It is fifty miles from my work to a grocery store. I can chase the lower humidity to Idaho for the summer, what are the winter temps like in Boone. Someone once told me it was colder and gloomier than other places. But that could be an option. I do love rocktown, and haven't had any chance to sample Chattanooga crags, is the sandstone similar to rocktown?

I wouldn't recommend Boone. It's up in the high country which is my favorite part of the state... April - October. Once winter sets in, it can be a lot of wet gloomy days and you'll be a few hours from anything that is consistently climbable. It's also a bit too "scene" for me, what with all the boulderers and all. And the tourists drive me crazy!

saxfiend wrote:Some people will probably scratch their heads at this suggestion, but I think Atlanta is a great central location for climbers. Not because there's much climbing near Atlanta, but because it's easy to get to a lot of great areas: ~1 hour from Atlanta: Tallulah Gorge, Mount Yonah, Currahee ~2-2.5 hours: T-Wall, Sunset, Leda, Deep Creek, Foster Falls, Jamestown, Sand Rock, Griffin Falls, Suck Creek, Lost Wall ~3 hours: Looking Glass, Laurel Knob, Whiteside, Steele, Crowders ~4 hours: Obed, Rumbling Bald, Linville Gorge ~5 hours: Stone Mountain, Moore's Wall, Pilot Mountain ~6-7 hours: Red River Gorge Asheville and Chattanooga are both really nice cities, I wouldn't turn down living in either one. But getting to NC destinations (and believe me, you'll want to) from Chattanooga is kind of a pain in the ass driving through the mountains; similar for TN destinations from Asheville. JL

Yeah, but Chatt is 2.5 hours from RB, 1.5 hours from Obed and 4.5 from the Red. Not to mention all the Chatt local areas that you're 2.5 hours from, we're 30 min from.

He's posting up for the season...why in the world would he want to post up in Atlanta?

I grew up and went to undergrad in the ATL, started climbing while living in the ATL and have climbed in about every place down there in NC/TN/AL/GA. In your shoes, I'd move to Chattanooga, not even close.

And the dude who can't find good herb or music in the 'Noog...you need better friends and a copy of the local alt-weekly.

saxfiend wrote:Some people will probably scratch their heads at this suggestion, but I think Atlanta is a great central location for climbers. Not because there's much climbing near Atlanta, but because it's easy to get to a lot of great areas:

Johnny, you forgot to tell him Allenbrook is 30 from downtown ATL, that should sell it! Scratch head? more like spit coffee all over the mac:)

You are going to move to a city sight unseen? That's pretty gutsy. I suggest taking a few weeks and try before you buy. I've spent lots of time in both places (make that all three, I grew up in Atlanta), and Asheville is hands down a better place to live, especially if you don't like rednecks, Chattanooga is full of them. Plus, what are you going to do in the winter, at least you can ski the Wolf or Cataloochee from Asheville, and you can swing picks at Whitesides and 215 all day long when the ice comes. The cycling scene is gigantic in Asheville, with our own track even, and the boating scene is hot too, just go to boatingbeta.com and see for yourself. There is no Orange Peel music venue in Chattanooga. You better think twice about what your girl is going to do while you are off all day long ticking single pitch routes. She's going to want more.

Looks like we are headed to Chattanooga. We are probably going to show up after the 20th of October looking for a place to stay, something not especially expensive. I would love to hit up some climbing and will PM the folks who told me to do so.

If anyone has suggestions on areas to live or knows anyone looking for roomates or renters I would love to hear about it. My girlfriend and I are in our twenties and she has a dog and a cat, so has to be pet friendly. We cook a good bit, and are pretty mellow, not huge into partying or anything, but love potlucks.

Many thanks for all of the help, and stoked to get on some sandstone, just sent my first twelve and hope to have tons more fun this year.

Adam